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Baron-General Maitland
Sir Victor Heronius Maitland, 4th Baron Maitland of Fero' Tar, Hero of Olsra, OKS OBL GKIR, (691KF-782KF) was a Kymurian noble and military commander, famous for his desperate defence of Olsra in the early stages of the Frenntolic Rebellion, as well as his successful tenure as chief of staff during the invasion of the north and siege of Dannenholm later in the war. He went on to implement Cyroth An-Bagranthar's reconstruction policies and in some areas of the north was considered a hero for his persecution of both Frenntolic and Kymurian war criminals. Following the war, Maitland remained close to Cyroth and became his Grand Marshal, the Supreme Commander of the Army, during which he managed the de-mobilisation of over 100,000 men. Early Life Despite the apparent fame and celebration of Maitland as a national hero, relatively little is known of his early life. It is known that he was born in Fero' Tar in 691KF, where much of his family land was. His mother was a minor noble (possibly a ancestor of Empress Isabel) and his father was Baron Marius Seebohm Maitland, who spent much of his life living in the plains, and considered himself a cultural plainsman. It seems that Marius had decided early on that his son would be a soldier, sending him off to the King Xavier Academy at the age of 7, where he was attached to the St. Bellaco infantry regiment as a drummer boy (a common profession for noble children) and was tutored in cavalry theory, mathematics and rhetoric. Maitland wrote in his incomplete autobiography that: "As a boy I was very impatient, and due to being raised around spineless servants, I refused to show respect or loyalty to anyone who demanded it from me. So when I was carted off to military school and drilled there on the parade ground for hours and hours every day, with great, tall and self-assured men marching around me, I was cowed back into a kind of quiet confusion, and I soon realised that not only were these men my unquestioned betters, but that there would be more like me, who needed loyalty and patience installed within them, and so I laid my eyes upon a major who served with the regiment, Hiram Smith, (he embodied those qualities totally) and set out to become like that man." At the age of 16, on account of his extremely hard work and leadership qualities, he was commissioned as a Lieutenant-ensign and stationed in Villaflores, where he was promoted to Infantry Captain (Cavalry positions were given out to royalty or professional mercenaries, since the St. Bellaco was one of the few standing formations) in 721KF. Maitland wished to climb the ranks further, but was prevented by doing so because all positions were filled. Things changed soon after when the Krahull Docks Affair (722KF) occurred. King Attin III had ordered the Krahull docks closed upon hearing that Bristler's Fever had broken out there. Infantry Captain Maitland's command of around 1000 men were sent out to help the local forces keep order. Upon arrival, the city was found to be in a very tense and angry mood, since the closure of the docks meant that the city's vast food supply could not get in from southern Anjuin and the Zeor wildlands, and many were beginning to go hungry. It appears Attin was unaware of the situation, and was under the impression that food from the plains was being shipped in via carts. Before long, riots broke out, and Maitland's men were forced to hold the disease-filled docks against seething crowds of rioters, all the while he kept trying to sneak out messengers to inform the powers-that-be what was happening. After three days in the city, with supplies running low and his men fearing they would not survive, Maitland announced that they would make a bold withdrawal through the streets to the city gates, and instead of forcing their way out, boldly marched in full columns through the streets to the bewilderment of the rioters, who let them pass out of a sense of respect and shock.